Musings and Sometimes Rants about the non-equal status of Fathers in Family Law and Parenting. Additionally periodic comparisons to the treatment of men compared to women in other areas including health care.

Friday, January 22, 2010

B.C. cops sorry for injuring man in mistaken arrest

I've been making comments on the corporate culture of the London, ON Police Service led by a leading Canadian misandrist Murray Faulkner in the London Free Press. This is a classic example of the corporate culture in many Police departments across the country.

If you are male and have been accused by a female you are guilty before charged but in this case you are tried, convicted, sentenced, and punished before trial and you are just plain guilty for being a man. The idiot cops had the wrong residence and the wrong person.

What if the allegations made against the other man are not even true?MJM

CTV News Channel: Vancouver police apologize

Police in Vancouver are investigating after a man wrongfully accused in a domestic dispute claimed he was beaten.

Vancouver Police are apologizing to a man who was injured in an arrest last week -- in what ended up being a case of mistaken identity that was further complicated by language barriers.

Nine days after the incident, Yao Wei Wu still bears the marks of the cuts and bruises to his face, legs and torso. His left eye is swollen shut. On Thursday night when he spoke to CTV B.C., there was still blood spattered outside his front door.

In the apology statement issued Thursday, police said they knocked on the wrong door while investigating allegations of domestic violence.

Police say on Jan. 12, two plain-clothes officers responded to a 911 call by a woman who said her husband beat her, and she was concerned for the safety of their baby.

The officers went to a home in southeast Vancouver, but did not realize there were two separate suites in the house.

The statement says the officers knocked on the wrong door and spoke with Wu, who does not speak English well.
The statement says Wu, 44, tried to close the door but police forced their way in, believing a woman in the suite had placed the 911 call.

The police statement does not describe how Wu sustained the injuries.

Wu told CTV B.C. he understood the men when they identified themselves as police, but said they yanked him from his home and beat him as soon as he opened the door.

He alleged they asked for his name only after they beat him.

He showed reporters a torn white T-shirt he claims was ripped during the incident.

Wu was arrested and taken to hospital, where Cantonese speaking officers were called in to translate. They eventually sorted out the mistake.

"The VPD regrets any inconvenience or trauma this may have caused the family," the police statement said.
Police told CTV B.C. that they will launch a "full and thorough investigation."

Police say they eventually did find the correct suite and charged a man with assault. With files from CTV B.C.

Photograph by: Augustine Siu, Ming Pao Daily Vancouver

VANCOUVER - Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu today retracted a statement issued Thursday that an innocent man was injured because he had resisted arrest by police officers investigating a case of domestic violence

"I want to make it perfectly clear that we do not stand by those statements," Chu said.

Yao Wei Wu, 44, who lives in Southeast Vancouver was confronted at 2:20 a.m. by two plainclothes police officers called to the residence where a woman was being attacked by her husband.

The officers in their haste to help the woman had gone to the wrong basement suite, said Chu.
According to an initial police media release, Wu's injuries came because he "resisted by striking out at police and trying to slam the door."

Chu said the statement was "premature" and an investigation was underway to determine what happened.
On Thursday evening Chu attended Wu's residence and apologized for the injuries and trauma suffered by he and his family.

He also apologized for the initial statement and the "further discomfort this may have caused,"

"We empathize with Mr. Wu and his family. Regardless of the fact we were rushing to the scene for all the right reasons an innocent man was arrested and injured in the process," said Chu.

Another issue to be dealt with is whether the officers identified themselves as police before the confrontation and whether the "force used in the arrest was appropriate," said Chu.

Chu said the investigation is being undertaken on behalf of the Office of Police Complaint Commissioner.
Once the officers discovered they had the wrong man a suspect was arrested and is facing charges.
The two officers involved are on their regular days off.

Chu said police investigators would be meeting with Wu later Friday for more information on the incident.
"I want to say how seriously we are taking this matter and how deeply sorry we are to Mr. Wu for what happened."

CHIEF CONSTABLE JIM CHU'S FULL STATEMENT:JANUARY 22nd, 2010

Last night I went to the home of Mr. Yao Wei Wu to apologize personally and on behalf of the Vancouver Police Department for the injuries and trauma he and his family have experienced after he became the victim of mistaken identity.

Around 2:20 yesterday morning, our officers went to his residence in response to a domestic assault call. The officers were told the caller was a woman with a baby and that her husband was on scene and was assaulting her.

The officers were initially told this crime in progress was at an address in East Vancouver. Later on, the caller clarified that she resided in the basement suite and the entry was in the back.

So as you can surmise, our two officers arrived at the right address but knocked on the wrong door.
In our initial media release we said that Mr. Wu resisted arrest and was injured in the process.

I want to make it perfectly clear this morning that we do not stand by that statement.

This was information that was premature and released as fact when in reality only the current investigation into the matter can determine the details of what happened.

We regret any further discomfort this may have caused Mr. Wu.

We empathize with the Wu family and how upsetting this incident must be for them.

Regardless of the fact that we were rushing to the scene for all the right reasons, an innocent man was arrested and injured in the process.

We are very sorry for that.

Other police officers arrived at this location and a suspect was arrested in the domestic violence call. We expect charges will be laid in this case.

Our investigation into what happened with Mr. Wu will examine the chain of events including the dispatch call, the issue of whether we properly identified ourselves as police and whether the force used in the arrest was appropriate.

The Office of the Police Complaints Commission will oversee the investigation.

I will say once again in closing, how seriously we are taking this matter and how deeply sorry we are for what happened to Mr. Wu.

Vancouver Police have formally and personally apologized to a 44 year old city man who was arrested in a case of mistaken identity.

In the early morning hours of January 21, 2010, two plain-clothes VPD officers were responding to a 911 call of a domestic incident. They were told by dispatch that a woman called to report that her drunken husband was hitting her and she was concerned for the safety of their baby.

The officers responded to a southeast Vancouver home, but didn't realize there were two separate residences in the house. Unfortunately for all involved, they knocked on the wrong door and encountered a middle-aged man who didn't understand English very well and would later say he didn't realize the men at his door were police.
The man resisted by striking out at the police and trying to slam the door, but the officers persisted in the belief that there may be a woman and child inside who could be in danger.

The man was arrested and received minor injuries to his face in the process. Police called for medical assistance and the man was transported to VGH as a precautionary measure. Cantonese speaking officers were also called to explain to the family why the police had made this mistake.

The VPD regrets any inconvenience or trauma this may have caused the family.
In related information, police did respond to the correct suite immediately after, where they met the complainant who said her drunken partner had hit her in the back of the head following an argument and then fled.

About Me

I am Politically active and right of centre on most issues with the odd exception such as legalization of "Mary Jane".
I advocate on changes to Family Law - an incredibly dysfunctional arena where parents are pitted against one another and children are the victims.
My picture will sometimes show me as a younger man simply because I like them.

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Leading causes of Injury to Women 2006

In 2006, unintentional falls were the leading cause of nonfatal injury among women of every age group, and rates generally increased with age. Women aged 65 years and older had the highest rate of injury due to unintentional falls (59.7 per 1,000 women), while slightly more than 19 per 1,000 women aged 18–34 and 35–44 years experienced fall-related injuries. Unintentional injuries sustained as motor vehicle occupants were the second leading cause of injury among 18- to 34-year-olds (18.7 per 1,000), while unintentional overexertion was the second leading cause of injury among women aged 35–44 and 45–64 years (13.7 and 9.3 per 1,000, respectively). Among women aged 65 years and older, being unintentionally struck by or against an object was the second leading cause of injury (5.7 per 1,000).

Injury related Emergency Department Visits

Unintentional and intentional injuries each represented a higher proportion of emergency department (ED) visits for men than women in 2005. Among women and men aged 18 years and older, unintentional injuries accounted for 19.9 and 27.5 percent of ED visits, respectively, while intentional injuries, or assault, represented 1.4 and 2.7 percent of visits, respectively. Among both women and men, unintentional injury accounted for a higher percentage of ED visits among those living in non-metropolitan areas, while adults living in metropolitan areas had a slightly higher percentage of ED visits due to intentional injury.